Man, I Feel Like a Lady!

Yes, I do like to paraphrase and today I do that in my title, courtesy of Shania Twain,
because there are indeed days when
man, I feel like a Lady!

Days when I get together with this little combo.

Clarks Snakeskin nubuck heels (AW15, discontinued), 40s vintage Corde bag (lonnnng discontinued!)

I wear these accessories and I become ladylike!

First, the shoes.  The heels - they look clunky.  I thought that I would walk clunkily in them.  I don't.  I walk like a lady.  And, as last weekend has proved, they are the perfect dancing shoe, as I felt NO PAIN when I danced for hours wearing these so comfortable shoes.  I can't say that I danced like a lady in them, but I did walk quite elegantly to and from the dancefloor ... I think.

But now, on to the little bag.  I bought it about 30 years ago, at a jumble sale and at a time when you could pick up interesting things from a by-gone age.

I bought it to use as an evening bag for black-tie events.  And so it was used, a few times a year.

My liking of this bag has remained constant over time. 
I like that it is beautifully made and corded in a simple geometric shape.  

I like it's size.  It's size was determined by what a 40s lady would have carried - maybe a small address book, a coin purse, a compact and lipstick, an embroidered perfumed hanky, a house key.

I like that it's size disciplines me to carry like a lady.

So, I like it's look.  I like it's size. 

But what I really like is it's click. 

When the clasp closes it makes a deep, solid, click sound. 

The click sound that ladies' bags used to make when I was a child. 

It is an elegant, grown-up sound.  The sound that invokes memories of times when I longed to be grown-up so that I too could carry a little handbag

filled with a few well-chosen pieces of lady-like ephemera.

Fast-forward from childhood to adulthood and the reality was that the handbags of my grown-up days were much larger than those of 40s ladies, because through the years they needed to carry so much more: make up bag and John Steinbeck novel, then spare nappies and babywipes, and later a huge hairbrush and jumbo can of hairspray, a Filofax and calculator.  So it pleases me greatly that now, in retirement, I (mostly) have no need for a big clunkingly capacious handbag as I travel lighter. 

And it pleases me even more that although my ball gowns may have not seen the light of day since The Great European Heatwave of 2007, I have now re-discovered this little handbag and use it frequently. 

It is my handbag of choice.  Its size fits my new life, my new life as a Lady.  A life where I don't need to transport anything more than an iphone, a debit card (if I remember!), a lipbalm, a tissue, house and car keys.

I am more of a Lady in this little bag's presence.  I am sprinkled with Lady-dust and Lady-magic happens when we are together.

So, my suggestion to you, dear reader, is to search out a vintage handbag.  Open, then close it.  Maybe several times.  Listen to its clunky click.  Then let me know if you were able to walk away from it.  Or if you walked away with it, feeling like A Lady.

A la perchoine.

A Time to Gain, a Time to Lose

A Fast Day. 

The weekend was a time to gain.  Now it is time to lose - that's the theory, anyway. 

Firstly, let's keep with the spirit of this blog and check out what I viewed as

the dress code for a Fast Day!

Dress code for a Fast Day? Oh behave, PP!  I really am joking, of course;

there isn't and there definitely shouldn't be a dress code for such an event

but this is what I wore when I happened to be fasting.

Woolover's grey cashmere/merino cardi here and vest top (looks like it's discontinued), M&S slim jeans, a print scarf, Gabor bootees and a Corde clutch.

Now, I rarely do blogger-style links to items because my stuff is usually very old and long-discontinued.  However, Woolovers seems to be a rare exception and keeps the classic lines going for ages.  But, queue sad emoticon, it seems that even they don't keep their lines going for as long as PP wears them!  The cardi is now in their on-the-way-out outlet section and the vest top has totally disappeared.  Shame, but the cardi is now available at a bargain price, so it's all good as it turns out!

Here's a close up of the scarf.  It's covered with long strands.  Makes it look itchy but it's not. 

I've had it for years.  It came from Creasey's.

So, I am digressing as usual.  Let's get back on track.  A Fast Day.  A day to make amends for any prior naughtiness.  And there was some at the weekend, the party wine, the breakfast crumpets, the creamy crab pasta, oh and did I mention the chocs previously? Maybe they just slipped my mind!  And there's me thinking that's it's a mystery that I'm not losing weight!

Anyway to claw back some Brownie points with my body after those little indulgences, I made

this soup.

It is so satisfying.  I used cannellini beans instead of chickpeas, as that is what I had in the larder; in doing so I shaved about 45 cals per portion, according to my calculation.  Job's a good'un.

 I always make enough for soup for two days' lunches so that there's something easy to hand the next Fast Day. 

Lunch, done.  Here's the evening meal.

This tasty burger recipe also originates from the same site, but as a burger with an artichoke dressing.   I did a quick search just now and can't find it there but I've tweaked it quite a bit over time anyway, so I'll give you mine.  It's really quick to make, beautifully moist and I make extra to freeze.

Makes 4

Calories per person, 290 (per the original recipe)

600 gr really good finely minced steak

about 25gr stoned black olives

about 1 tbspn capers, drained and rinsed if they are very salty, and chopped

some chopped coriander if you want

pepper (no salt as the capers take care of that)

2-3 tbspn of a relish/pesto/chutney/pickle - for these I used M&S red onion, tomato and mint relish

 a few slices of jalapeno peppers for topping

1 tbspn oil for cooking

Mix together all ingredients and shape into burgers. 

Fry 2-3 minutes each side. 

I serve with a salad drizzled with balsamic, or stir fry vegetables (I like a mix which includes lots of bean sprouts).

Even if the weight isn't falling off for me this time, I do find that a couple of Fast Days a week is are cleansing experience for the body.  Temple Days.  I do feel better in and with myself after a day of meals like these.

.I do hope you find these recipes helpful. You know, when I started this blog I envisaged it running with just a sprinkling of food talk and recipes.  It has not panned out that way, food seems to creep in most days.  Now, what does that say about me? :-). 
Maybe that most days I am busy with the building blocks for A Time to Lose!

A la perchoine.

Kartoffelmad - Probably the Best Comfort Food in the World

Whilst I searched out photos for my Fear of Packing post the other day, I came across these. 

Eating out and wearing an Accessorise silk scarf, soft and light and with some nice colours in there to complement outfits.  

Eating at "home" in Denmark and wearing one of the Tie Rack Twin silk scarves, it's beige/grey/black version .

Yes, I like scarves!

But, dear reader, please take a look at what's on my plates.  Yes, there's a sausage on one but there is also something called kartoffelmad on both, which translates as "potato food" and it is the absolute ultimate in Comfort Food yet it is an obscenely simple dish. 

Perfect for a stormy day.  Or any day J.   And following my Probably the Best paraphrasing, this one ranks right up there so please give it a try. You will be thankful that I have shared this with you.  Your life will be richer for knowing how to make this dish.  Trust me.

OK.  Enough of the hyperbole, I think I've bigged this up enough so here's how it's put together.

My Kartoffelmad Lunch

Per person

Slice of bread, buttered if wished

Waxy potatoes, sliced

Red Onion, thinly sliced

Mayonnaise

Chives, snipped/chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Butter the bread, if liked, then spread with a thin layer of mayonnaise.  Place on plate.

Place sliced potato on top the mayonnaise, then red onion and top with more mayonnaise to your liking. 

It is traditional to top with chives and thinly sliced radish; I didn’t have any radish L. 

Vaersgo', tuck in, then say "tak for mad"!


You are very welcome.

A la perchoine.

Fear of Packing

We woke up today to a lake at the bottom of the garden which is no surprise as we've "enjoyed" constant torrential rain, hailstorms and storm-force winds for days, though today the wind has finally dropped.  

This weather got me thinking of warmer times, holidays past and clement weather ahead.

Now, for me the downside of travel is - queue Jaws music - packing; I have packaphobia. 
Our 15kgs and 20kgs allowances for flight carry-on and hold and luggage respectively and is bad news for one (me) who likes plenty of dressing options, so packing needs serious consideration. 

  

My packing process? I start with a list, make amendments, then a total re-write before packing, whittling down, re-packing.  You get the picture. I fear it.   So I was relieved to read that there are others like me out there in the bloggisphere and help is but a google away. e.g. here with 

this lady

These sites bring succour to those who share my condition.

My packing isn't as scientific as that lovely lady's but there is method to it. I photograph the final packing spread out on the floor, then I endeavour to take daily photos of what I actually wear, followed by a review whilst sorting out the snaps on return. 
It's become apparent that the same core items crop up day on day, they are my workhorses; aspirational stuff packed doesn't see any more action than when I schlepp it round in the suitcase.  So nowadays I pack the identified workhorses.  End of.  Fin de.
E.g., it's early summer, Denmark and mainland UK, 3.5 weeks.  I packed layers as I've previously experienced snow there in June!  But it was beautifully warm.  The workhorses?

M&S cut-offs, Woolovers French Navy cardi and top; Next pumps, crochet taupe/white bag, grey/navy mix silk scarf bought 35 years ago in Copenhagen - I took it back to its "roots", the store (Magasin) from which it was bought!

L: M&S jeggings, The White Company taupe top, Navy Woolovers cotton/silk cardi, Next pumps;

R: M&S beige cut offs, beige Alexon longline top, Woolovers French Navy cardi, Clarks sandals (very comfy).

M&S black jeggings, grey cotton/silk cardi and top from Woolovers, comfy Ecco Sandals (bought there), the old grey/navy silk scarf tied as a head bandau.

A close-up of the scarf; mix-and-match bracelets from Accessorize a couple of years ago.

L:Black Next modal top over black t-shirt, coral M&S cut-offs (6-7th summer!), black Ecco sandals.  R: M&S Limited Collection modal t-shirt, Cotton Traders white cut-offs, same sandals;

the scarf is the grey/beige/black silk sister of the yonks-old Tie Rack scarf which I showed in My First Time Blog - therre, now you have met that little family!

Fairly pedestrian outfits, fitting for a lady in her 60s :-), but these were my mix-and-match workhorses for 3 weeks. 
Packing will be a doddle this year!

And during a 3 week trip to sizzling France, the photographic evidence is that I wore a variation on this throughout.

East layered cotton lawn skirt (ca. 2004, so light, it's a summer travel must-pack),
White Company vest in taupe, and that little crochet bag.

Same skirt and same bag (bien sur) with a multi-coloured jersey dress which I tuck up and use as a long vesttop (£3 charity shop find from 2004 another summer must-pack).

I'm embarrassed to add that we drove on that holiday and I filled our boot with a shocking amount of clothes and shoes (because I could).  And I seem to have worn one skirt, two tops and one pair of sandals!

So, nothing exciting or uber-stylish but the point of this rather long rambling is that if you do a bit of holiday photo analysis, perhaps you too will discover that you wear just a few items on a mix-and-match basis, so pack that and all the fancy stuff can stay at home!

If you have managed to stay awake after all my ramblings, well done you!

A la perchoine.